Gaming
esports
Lurk through the snake pit of VALORANT with Viper, the Toxic Queen
After a buff for the ages, Viper is ready to make any (and every) enemy player furious with her.
Viper is Valorant’s most toxic controller, and we don’t mean she gets banned for what she’s saying in chat. Viper has a kit that can lock down areas and punish enemies with devastating abilities. After receiving a huge buff, which was only lightly toned down, she is a solid pick for your roster. As one of the last members of a team to enter the fight, staying alive is always the prime directive. Viper has to stick around because she’s so skilled at holding sites, clutching out rounds and shining in the post plant. Here is why you will always want to give your Viper the bomb.
Snake Bite (C ability)
With Snake Bite, Viper shoots out an exploding canister with the ability to travel large portions of the map. Once it hits the ground, it detonates into a toxic AOE, draining health quickly and applying the vulnerable effect which doubles any incoming damage. Two charges go for 100 credits, making it a cheap and effective means of helping rounds go your way early and often.
It excels in blocking off locations that enemies want to push. It’s especially deadly in time sensitive scenarios where waiting out your Snake Bite is the least attractive option. Snake Bite is an ability that has launched a dozen line up videos, similar to Brimstone’s Molly and Sova’s Shock Dart shenanigans. The ability has dozens of spots for you to lineup after leaving a bomb site, allowing you to drop it from the sky, right on top of the bomb. That’ll take care of any stubborn defusers, or at least buy you time to let the bomb go off before they can begin defusing again.
If guessing trajectory, launch distance and strength of the wind isn’t your speed, then there is always the ole faithful method of being a general nuisance around the bomb site. After using an ultimate or your poison cloud to obscure your newly planted bomb. Send one or both of your Snake Bites into the sky, directly above you and while this may kill you if the enemy rushes it already won’t matter. Thinking the site is now clear they rush to defuse as toxic green slime rains down on them not once but twice. Just like the Kid’s Choice Awards, just without the surfboard.
Poison Cloud/Orb (Q ability)
Can throw down a deployable item that, when detonated, blocks off an area with a smoke-like green substance which does decay damage to any who enter it. It can be used twice, relying on the same fuel reserve as toxic screen. Be mindful when using the two abilities in tandem. If your fuel reserves are already low, then Poison Cloud will start on a depleted fuel reserve and have a shorter uptime. It can also be picked up and redeployed, but the charge will not carry over to the next round.
Poison Cloud is great when locking down locations, stalling and area denying, as well as during defense and post plant. With right click, Poison Cloud can be lobbed onto the scenery (think lamps, crates, and door frames), allowing you to drop it so the lower half of the enemy is visible to you and your bullets. If done right, the ability will make it near impossible for the enemy to exploit the same foot shot on you.
It’s a valid strategy in aggressive situations as well. Poison clouds can block off a choke point or corridor very quickly, even when thrown. Sneaking into it and trying to wait for the enemy to reload and surprise them with a Shorty, Stinger or Bucky can work to get a quick pick with little risk. While it can (and does) get pushed through, many players would rather wait out the cloud, rather than push and risk blindness with an instant 50 decay damage.
When looking for line up angles with Poison Cloud, KillJoy is a great reference. Since both of her deployables that aren’t a turret robot have similar weight to the Poison Cloud deployable, any angle that a KillJoy uses to block enemies from high ground or perfectly block a common flank spot can be duplicated with Poison Cloud. Try it out in the range to see the fruits of your labour, or watch any of the dozens of videos on the subject to get a deeper idea into just how much you can get off of the lineups.
Toxic Screen (E ability)
Vipers signature ability, Toxic screen shoots out a string of gas emitters that shoot in a line the direction that you are currently looking at when you press E. Pressing E again activates the ability, which deploys a large green wall of smoke that operates similar to Phoenix’s fire wall.
Always shoot high with the screen. If you deploy it on the ground near you the screen will only travel to the block your mouse was on. Aiming higher or sending it over portions of the map can help it serve a dual purpose. When there is a heaven (Upstairs area) and a basement, if you aim lower than the window level for heaven it will only cover the basement, while aiming higher will cover heaven instead.
Try them in the range to really get the feel of what they can do and how you deploy them. While on defense, this is even more crucial as you can use your smoke in ways that cover the site for you and the enemy. It can allow for aggression, but you should be looking for passive options to gain intel on how the enemy reacts to you and to avoid becoming consistent.
Going through Toxic Screen will cause decay to the enemy, making it easier for Viper to get the advantage and deter enemies altogether. It’s great in helping your team get on site quickly, letting you plant the bomb and set up your defense. If another controller is on your team, getting onto the site will be laughably easy. On Defense, use it to block off an entryway or to block off where a suspected push normally begins.
It’s valuable in retake situations as well, when you’re using it to push the bomb quickly. There are numerous line ups to learn that maximize Viper, and since Toxic Screen only comes with one charge, it is a solid ability you should be using every round. Toxic Screen can be deployed before the round starts as well. Using it early to block off angles and enable a quick push will draw more attention from the defenders, nonetheless it is still a worthwhile risk.
Ultimate: Viper's Pit
Viper’s ultimate causes a toxic cloud to emanate out from her location. One of the best abilities in the game today, it balloons outward to cover a large distance, nearly all of a bomb site. It highlights enemies with a red outline and degrades those who enter down to one hit point.
Viper has one of the most unique ultimates in the game and requires her to play around it, literally and figuratively. Most often, the best time to use this ultimate is after you have planted the bomb. It obscures everything and forces the other team to push into your green death trap. The price of admission? All but one of your hit points.
Lay in waiting like the snake that you are and get ready to get stepped on. Enemies pushing through are always cautious, but don’t forget they’re highlighted when they step inside. By checking every angle, you can often kill enemies who have their backs to you. Some players will shoot into smokes as a deterrent (or because they are so galaxy brained that they know where our heads are relative to smoke over y^2).
Barring any genius level plays, you’re mostly going to get tagged when the enemy hears gunfire and can pin your general location. That works out for you since you can see their locations and the opponent is one shot and you are not (thanks for stepping into the Viper’s pit). Pair it with a shotgun and prowl around or use a Vandal and prepare for some easy one shots. Her kit is versatile and, if placed properly, can give you the perfect vantage to begin your defense and start clutching out some aces.
Buy strategies
Viper is a late round specialist, getting most of her value out of vision obscuring and area denying abilities. For early rounds on defense, a pistol and a Snake Bite should be fine. You’ll need a little more thought in the later rounds once you can buy all abilities without them being at the expense of shields or weapons.
Shotguns are a great option with Viper. If you happen to play into her smokes, you can catch enemies off guard early and often. The weapon pairs well with her ultimate too, offering a forgiving spread and brutal results to any who enter. Assault Rifles are also a prime option, thanks to the one hit property of her ultimate, along with the weapons’ range and accuracy. If the Phantom and Vandal are both equally appealing, try using the Phantom. Its bullets are not traceable so, if you fire into your smokes, the other team won't get the same directional information they would if you shot 5 bullets beside their head with a Vandal.
Post plant
So the bomb has just been planted and you are outnumbered. Good thing you picked Viper. If there is one hero made for defending an already planted bomb, it’s Viper. Toxic screen and poison cloud are two abilities that can make pushing onto the site in any capacity a huge disadvantage for the enemy. A poison cloud over the bomb could add time to stall, as does using your Snake Bite on the bomb. Either from site or safely away, each ability either causes the enemy to slow down and reconsider their approach, or physically forces them off of your abilities. Lastly, and the real creme de la creme is Vipers Pit.
As you already know, it takes over a large portion of the map and rises to cover the floors of some second floor areas. It's never a fun scenario when running to defuse a bomb and seeing Viper’s big green sea of trouble. Enemies will hesitate and get lost as they enter your nest. Even if they go in as a group. Not only does it make the bomb tougher to find, but it splits the enemies attention between finding you and finding the bomb.
Snake Bite while in Vipers Nest will instantly kill any enemy, as will the slightest graze from one of your guns. Oftentimes, playing it out for time can help you as well. Hiding until you hear the enemy begin to defuse isn’t as Brave as getting the quick Ace, but a dub is a dub. When you hear the defuse begin, start your lurk and pick off the other team. Either they commit to the defuse and even up the numbers against you, or they take the player off the bomb and focus you, potentially leaving enough time for the bomb to detonate.
Many heroes have abilities that can stall and defend well post plant. For many, it is a dual use of their ultimate or a weird mix of abilities. Few, if any, have their kit tailored for those situations quite like Viper. Even after a small nerf, she is still a current staple in the meta and making toxic queens out of the enemy team in chat.
